To Hell with the Devil (1982) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Bruce Lee signs his soul to Flit after Rocky steals a song Bruce wrote but didn't register with the copyright office. Rocky records it first, threatening Bruce's future as a songwriter. Desperate for success and to win Peggy's love, Bruce makes the deal in exchange for three wishes.

Foreshadowing: Rocky's theft is foreshadowed earlier when his agent actively seeks unpublished songs to give the pop star a competitive edge.

• soul contract
• three wishes
• song theft
• deal with devil
• flit

Bruce's first wish is to become famous for singing his own song and to have Peggy love him exclusively. His recording does outsell Rocky's, giving him fame, but Peggy feels trapped by his sudden success and leaves him because she senses the relationship isn't genuine.

Foreshadowing: The deal's true cost is hinted at when Flit describes himself as a trickster who grants wishes that ultimately harm the wish-maker.

• first wish
• fame
• success
• peggy leaves
• wishes backfire

Peggy leaves because she feels trapped by Bruce's instant fame. His first wish gave her exclusive love for him, but when success arrived, she realized the relationship had become manufactured rather than organic. She senses something is wrong with how everything unfolded.

Foreshadowing: The song's stolen nature foreshadows that anything built on the wish will also feel illegitimate or forced.

• peggy leaves
• love
• fame
• relationship problems

Bruce's second wish makes Peggy perfectly obedient to him, but the wish also makes her obedient to anyone else who gives her commands. This backfires dangerously because she becomes manipulable by others, turning her obedience into a liability rather than a desired trait.

Foreshadowing: Flit's trickster nature is established early, suggesting his deals always have hidden complications.

• second wish
• obedience
• manipulation
• wish backfires

Bruce's third wish is to live a simple life with Peggy, giving up wealth and fame. However, the wish's consequence is severe poverty that stretches for years. Eventually, the financial strain becomes so unbearable that Peggy is compelled to give up their children for adoption, turning the simple life into a heartbreaking reality.

Foreshadowing: The wishes escalate in consequence, with each one demanding a greater toll than the last.

• third wish
• poverty
• children
• adoption
• simple life

Reverend Ma was a Catholic priest who died and ended up in purgatory for not following church rules strictly enough. There he met Flit, a thief heading to Hell. They became cosmic rivals, and Ma was sent back to Earth for 36 years to fight for souls against Flit. Bruce Lee becomes the central soul they both contest.

Foreshadowing: Ma's initial encounter with Flit in purgatory establishes them as opposing forces from the very beginning.

• reverend ma
• purgatory
• flit
• celestial battle
• soul contest

In the climax, Flit attempts to sacrifice Bruce Lee to secure his soul, but Reverend Ma fights him to prevent this. Their battle becomes a fierce hand-to-hand showdown that destroys both beings. Their conflict ends in mutual destruction, though they later transform into angels who continue their rivalry in Heaven.

Foreshadowing: Their long-running conflict throughout Bruce Lee's life builds toward this inevitable cosmic confrontation.

• final battle
• ma vs flit
• heaven
• angel
• destruction

Bruce Lee tears up the contract after experiencing the disastrous consequences of all three wishes, fame that drove Peggy away, obedience that made her vulnerable, and poverty that forced the loss of their children. He chooses to reject magical shortcuts and instead pursue a genuine life with Peggy through normal human effort.

Foreshadowing: The escalating failures of each wish teach Bruce that the contract ultimately destroys rather than fulfills his desires.

• contract
• tearing up
• choice
• love
• rejection of magic

After their final battle destroys both physical forms, Reverend Ma and Flit transform into angels in Heaven. Their rivalry continues eternally, but now they fight as celestial beings rather than earthly agents. The film ends with them as opposing angels, suggesting their cosmic conflict never truly ends.

Foreshadowing: The film establishes early that Ma was heading to Heaven before encountering Flit, foreshadowing their eventual divine status.

• angels
• heaven
• transformation
• eternal conflict
• ma flit

Rocky's agent steals Bruce's unregistered song because the music industry prioritizes profit over originality. Since Bruce didn't legally register the song, Rocky records it first and claims it as his own, threatening Bruce's chance at success as a songwriter and setting up the circumstances that drive Bruce to make his fatal bargain.

Foreshadowing: The music industry's exploitation of unpublished artists is established through Rocky's glamorous but ethically empty career.

• song theft
• rocky
• music industry
• copyright
• stolen song